| The Mumbles Lifeboat Station | |
| Map Type: | Wales |
| Pushpin Relief: | 1 |
| Location: | Mumbles Pier |
| Address: | Pier Road |
| Location City: | Mumbles, Swansea, SA3 4EN |
| Location Country: | Wales, UK |
| Coordinates: | 51.5699°N -3.9741°W |
| Former Names: | Swansea Lifeboat Station |
| Building Type: | RNLI Lifeboat Station |
| Opened Date: | 1835 (taken over by RNLI - 1863) |
| Owner: | Royal National Lifeboat Institution |
| Website: | The Mumbles RNLI Lifeboat Station |
The Mumbles Lifeboat Station is at Mumbles Pier, located at the south-western corner of Swansea Bay, near the village of Mumbles, within the city and county of Swansea, in the historic county of Glamorgan, Wales.
A lifeboat was first placed at Mumbles in 1835, provided by the Royal National Institution for the Preservation of Life from Shipwreck (RNIPLS), managed by Swansea Harbour Trustees. The station, now located in Swansea, was taken over by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) in 1863, and moved back to Mumbles in 1866. In October 1904, the station officially became The Mumbles Lifeboat Station.[1]
The station currently operates a All-weather lifeboat, 16-27 Roy Barker IV (ON 1307), on station since 2014, and the smaller Inshore lifeboat, Mark Lott (D-761), on station since 2013.[2]
In February 1832, the cutter Ilfracombe Packet ran aground trying to enter Swansea harbour. Silvanus Padley, son of the Harbour Trust Clerk, having been initially refused the loan of the Customs Officers' boat, smashed its securing lock, and put out with 5 pilots to aid the vessel.[3]
This was just one of dozens of incidents that prompted discussion and demands for a lifeboat, but despite meetings and action plans by the Swansea Harbour Trust, and the formation of a committee including Silvanus Padley, nothing was done.[3]
In October 1833, John Bevan, Master of the schooner Gower, swam out to the brig Andrew and Margaret of Maryport, on passage from Devon to Cardiff when it ran aground at Margam, Rescuing one man in the water, he also got a line to the vessel, and the remaining crew of 4 were also saved. Bevan was awarded the RNIPLS Silver Medal.[4]
Finally, in 1835, a petition from locals for the provision of a lifeboat, to be stationed at Mumbles in the charge of the Inspecting Officer of Coastguard, was sent via the Swansea MP John Henry Vivian, to the Royal National Institution for the Preservation of Life from Shipwreck (RNIPLS), who agreed to provide a lifeboat. A 28-foot (12-Oared) non-self-righting Palmer lifeboat, was ordered from Taylor of Blackwall, London, costing £120. There are no service records for the boat. On 3 May 1851, Capt. Edwards of Swansea Harbour Trust reported the boat unservicable, adding that it had never been regarded as a good boat, and was the reason no money had been spent on its upkeep by the Trustees. In 1859, Capt. Crewe-Read, RN, Coastguard Inspector at Swansea, reported that there had been a lifeboat at Mumbles for some years, but had proved useless there, and had been taken to Swansea.[3]
Meanwhile, ships had still been wrecked, and rescues had taken place. The RNIPLS awarded no less than nine Silver Medals for rescues in the area between 1835 and 1840.[4]
The Harbour Trustees ordered a new lifeboat in 1855. It was in fact a legal requirement, under the Harbours, Docks and Piers Clauses Act 1847, companies operating Dock facilities were required by Act of parliament to provide a lifeboat. A 30-foot Self-righting 'pulling and sailing' (P&S) lifeboat, one with oars and sails, was constructed by Forrestt of Limehouse, arriving in Swansea on 1 April 1856. A boathouse was constructed next to the Swansea harbour office, at a cost of £64-17s-0d.[3]
In 1863, a meeting of the Harbour Trustees was held with Capt. John Ward of the RNLI, (the RNIPLS having become the RNLI in 1854). He was firmly of the opinion that the lifeboat should be stationed at Mumbles Head, and it was agreed that the RNLI would undertake this. A site for the boathouse was provided by Henry Somerset, 8th Duke of Beaufort, and a tender of £174 from James Randall of Kidwelly was accepted, for its construction.[3]
Initially, a 30-foot (10-Oared) Self-Righting (P&S) lifeboat was provided, arriving in 1863, being named Martha and Anne. The boat was kept at the Swansea South Dock, awaiting completion of the Mumbles boathouse. The boat wasn't new, and had previously served at the Drogheda No.1 lifeboat station at . The boathouse was ready in 1864, but couldn't be used, as plans to extend the railway there had developed. However, a number of incidents occurred off the Mumbles, and the boat was finally transferred to Mumbles in January 1866, although she would be stored in the open, under the cliffs. Finally it was confirmed that the railway extension had been abandoned, and construction of the slipway could start. Soon afterwards, the RNLI provided a new lifeboat, the 33-foot Wolverhampton.[2] [3]
During a gale on Saturday 27 January 1883, the German barque Admiral Prinz Aldabert was driven on to rocks near the Mumbles Lighthouse. Wolverhampton went out to assist and was capsized multiple times, finally being washed on to rocks. The lifeboat was badly damaged, and four of the lifeboat crew drowned, with others being seriously injured. Coxswain Jenkin Jenkins was awarded the RNIPLS Silver Medal, but had lost two sons in the incident.[4] [5] [6]
The badly damaged lifeboat Wolverhampton was withdrawn, and replaced with a slightly larger 34-foot 8in lifeboat, also to be named Wolverhampton (ON 229). The boathouse was demolished and rebuilt, by Watkins and Jenkins, at a cost of £350, completed in 1884. In 1888, a new 15-foot wide, 60-foot long slipway was constructed, at a cost of £110. In 1897, Mumbles Railway and Pier Company constructed a new slipway for the RNLI, at no cost to the Institution, as they extended the railway across the top of it, right past the boathouse, to reach the Mumbles Pier, which was under construction.[2] [3]
On 31 January 1903, the steamship Christina of Waterford ran aground on Aberavon sands. The crew were able to walk ashore at low tide. The following day, Mumbles lifeboat (ON 432) was launched into gale-force conditions, to stand by the vessel as she refloated. Deciding to take shelter in the mouth of the River Afan, the lifeboat was hit by huge waves, and capsized twice. Six of the ten men thrown into the water were lost, including Coxswain Thomas Rogers, and David Morgan, a survivor of the 1883 capsize.[6] [7] [8]
was withdrawn from service. After a short period with relief lifeboat Reserve No.4 (ON 378), the 37-foot lifeboat Quiver No.1 (ON 265) (Reserve No.3A) was placed on service. Too long for the boathouse, she was moored afloat, and a second boat, former lifeboat Richard (ON 248), was modified, and housed in the boathouse, to be used as a boarding boat.[2]
At a meeting of the Mumbles lifeboat committee in 1905, it was agreed that a boathouse and slipway accessed via the new Mumbles Pier was the way forward. It would be 1916 before the slipway was constructed, and a further 6 years in 1922, before a boathouse on top was completed. The boathouse would remain in use until 2014.[6]
On 4 October 1944, the Canadian frigate HMCS Chebogue was hit by a torpedo, whilst escorting westbound Atlantic convoy ONS 33. With all other crew taken off, she was towed 890 miles, with just 37 men and six officers still aboard. She arrived in Swansea Bay on 11 Oct under tow from the Ocean Tug HMS Earner, but arrived in worsening conditions, of hurricane force. The tow line was lost, and the vessel ran aground on Port Talbot bar.[3] [9]
The Mumbles lifeboat Edward, Prince of Wales (ON 678) was launched at 7:45pm. Due to the position of the vessel, and in extremely difficult conditions, the lifeboat had to make 12 visits to the ship, rescuing three or four men at a time. One man broke a leg, one jumped and landed on the Coxswain, who was badly bruised, and a third fell between the boats, fortunate not to be crushed, but all were rescued. Coxswain William John Gannon was awarded the RNLI Gold Medal, with other awards made to the crew.[4]
A third disaster would strike the Mumbles lifeboat. On 23 April 1947, the Mumbles lifeboat Edward, Prince of Wales was launched to the aid of the Liberty ship Samtampa, which was bound for Newport, but had developed engine trouble in a violent gale, and was reported drifting towards Nash Shoal. The lifeboat was last seen just after 7pm. The Samtampa came ashore at Sker Point, and broke into three sections. All of the 39 crew of the Samtampa perished. At dawn, the upturned wrecked lifeboat could be seen. All eight lifeboatmen were also lost, including RNLI Gold medal holder Coxswain William John Gannon.[10] [11]
See also: The Mumbles Lifeboat disaster.
The lifeboat is the main workhorse of the station, being used for more than 60 per cent of the callouts. In 2014 a new Tamar class lifeboat entered service at The Mumbles, temporarily based at Swansea Marina while a new, larger, boathouse and slipway were constructed on the end of Mumbles pier. In 2015 and 2016, Mumbles was the busiest station in Wales, launching 83 times, and was the busiest station in 2022, with 126 launches.[12]
In January 2023, safety concerns over access over the existing pier to the station, caused the station building to be closed. The current pier owners do not have the funds to pay for essential repairs. The lifeboat is currently kept afloat at a mooring.[13]
The following are awards made to the crew of Mumbles Lifeboat Station[3] [4] [6]
William John Gammon, Coxswain - 1944
John Bevan, Master of the schooner Gower - 1833
William Evans - 1835
John Reeve, Master of Schooner Wave - 1838
Captain Thomas Jones - 1839
Captain John Howell - 1839
Captain Charles Sutton - 1839
Captain Joseph Foley - 1839
Arthur Rees - 1839
Lewis Jenkins - 1839
Captain Joseph Foley (Second service clasp) - 1840
Jenkin Jenkins, Coxswain - 1883
Lionel Derek Scott, Coxswain - 1964
Lionel Derek Scott BEM, Coxswain (Second service clasp) - 1971
William John Gammon, Coxswain - 1941
Robert Trevor Williams, Mechanic - 1941
William Gilbert Davies, Mechanic - 1944
Thomas John Ace, Bowman - 1944
Lionel Derek Scott, Coxswain - 1968
Gunner Edward Hutchings, R.A. - 1883
Charles R. Davies, crew member - 1944
Thomas A. Davies, crew member - 1944
William John Eynon, crew member - 1944
Alfred D. Michael, crew member - 1944
William Michael, crew member - 1944
W Davies, Second Coxswain - 1964
Mechanic J Gammon - 1964
W Tucker, Assistant Mechanic - 1964
J Bailey, Signalman - 1964
K Kostromin - 1964
G Parsons - 1964
H Randall - 1964
J Whitford - 1964
Alan Richards Jones, Helmsman - 1971
Peter Allan Algie, crew member - 1971
Anthony David Lewis, crew member - 1971
Lionel Derek Scott BEM, Coxswain - 1981
Anthony David Lewis, Helmsman - 1983
W Clements - 1973
William John Gammon, Coxswain - 1944
R J Gammon, Mechanic - 1948
Lionel Derek Scott, Coxswain - 1970QBH[14]
Capt. Peter Royall Griffiths, DLA - 2009NYH[15]
Jenkin Jenkins, Coxswain - 1874
Lionel Derek Scott BEM, Coxswain - 1980
In memory of those lost whilst serving The Mumbles lifeboat.[3] [6]
John Jenkins, Second Coxswain
William Jenkins, crew member
William Macnamara, crew member
William Rogers, crew member
Thomas Rogers, Coxswain
Daniel Claypitt, Second Coxswain
George Michael, crew member
James Gammon, crew member
Robert Smith, crew member
David John Morgan, crew member (Survivor of 1883 capsize)
William John Gammon, Coxswain
William Noel, Second Coxswain
Gilbert Davies, Mechanic
Ernest Griffin, Assistant Mechanic
William R. S. Thomas, Bowman
William L. Howell, crew member
William Ronald Thomas, crew member
Richard Smith, crew member
| ON | Op. No. | Name | In service[17] | Class | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| – | – | 1835–1851 | 28-foot Palmer | [18] | |
| – | – | 1855–1863 | 30-foot Peake | [19] | |
| – | Martha and Anne (Swansea) | 30-foot Self-Righting (P&S) | [20] | ||
| Pre-455 | – | Wolverhampton | 1866–1883 | 33-foot Self-Righting (P&S) | [21] |
| 229 | – | Wolverhampton | 1883–1898 | 34-foot 8in Self-Righting (P&S) | [22] |
| 173 | – | Reserve No.5 | 1898–1900 | [23] | |
| 436 | – | 1900–1903 | 35-foot Self-Righting (P&S) | [24] | |
| 378 | – | Reserve No.4 | 1903 | 35-foot Self-Righting (P&S) | [25] |
| 265 | – | Quiver No.1 (Reserve No.3A) | 1903–1905 | 37-foot 2in Self-Righting (P&S) | [26] |
| 248 | – | Richard | 1904–1923 | 34-foot Boarding Boat | [27] |
| 535 | – | Charlie Medland | 1905–1924 | 43-foot Watson (P&S) | [28] |
| 678 | – | Edward, Prince of Wales | 1924–1947 | [29] | |
| 849 | – | William Gammon - Manchester and District XXX | 1947–1974 | [30] | |
| 940 | – | Pentland (Civil Service No.31) | 1974–1985 | ||
| 1096 | Ethel Anne Measures | 1985–2006 | |||
| 1127 | 47-019 | Babs & Agnes Robertson | 2006–2014 | ||
| 1307 | 16-27 | Roy Barker IV | 2014– | [31] | |
| Op. No. | Name | In service | Class | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| D-44 | 1965–1972 | |||
| 1972–1986 | ||||
| D-319 | 1986–1994 | |||
| D-463 | Nellie Grace Hughes | 1994–2004 | ||
| D-623 | Peterborough Beer Festival II | 2004–2013 | ||
| D-761 | Mark Lott | 2013– | ||